3 percent of profs minorities 
By Kim Chi Ha, staff writer 
Posted on February 15, 2007

Despite various efforts to diversify faculty, JMU still falls short when compared with the nation.  The national average of African-American professors at colleges and universities is 5 percent, compared to JMU’s 3 percent.

In fall 2006, JMU’s faculty included 25 African-Americans, one Native-American, 22 Asians, 11 Hispanics and 731 Caucasians.  Minorities comprised 7 percent of the faculty, a fall from 10 percent in 2000, according to statistics from JMU’s Institutional Research Center.

“First, there is competition for minorities with Ph.D.s; the pool is very limited,” said Daniel Wubah, special assistant to the president.  “Nationally the number of minority Ph.D.s is very small.”

JMU saw a steady rise in minority faculty through the 1980s and 1990s, but the numbers have dropped slightly since their peak in 2000.

“We are doing more than you can imagine, though,” Wubah said. “Another problem is retention; those who are here want to be here, but the recruited ones often get better offers and JMU’s best may not be as competitive.”

JMU made a distinct effort to increase diversity among faculty by creating a faculty subcommittee on the topic. Another opportunity for minority professors is the Coors fellowship, of which the most recent recipient was Daphyne Thomas, a professor in the College of Business.

“A problem is unless individuals are aware of a receptive environment, they won’t look at JMU,” said Alexander Gabbin, head of the faculty subcommittee on diversity.  “The issue is the spirit of the place; JMU is not located in a place where minority faculty would usually consider.”

Gabbin added JMU lacks diversity because of its rural location and minority faculty usually do not consider moving here, but if they were able to visit the campus because of other reasons it might persuade them to stay and teach, Gabbin said.

“When I first came to JMU for an interview, it was in the fall, and I was looking around the quad, there were students playing in the trees,” said Young Choi, professor in the College of Business. 

“It was so beautiful, and I just made a decision without hesitation.”

Though it was not designed to attract minority faculty, “The Furious Flower Poetry Conference in 1994 and 2004 attracted noted African-American poets,” Gabbin said.  “It raised awareness of an environment where minority faculty can possibly go and thrive.”

Wubah said: “In an environment where the faculty is not diverse, it can determine if [new faculty] choose JMU or not.”

Aashir Nasim came to JMU as a result of one of those exchange programs where Ph.D. students, in their final year come to an institution to teach.  Nasim was given a job in psychology and chose to stay, Wubah said.

AALANA, which stands for African-American, Latino, Asian, Native-American, is another program created for faculty and staff.  The organization on campus holds informal socials for members to be acquainted with one another.

“I have a very diverse international experience,” Choi said. “To help students prepare for the Internet age emphasizing globalization, the diversity of languages, cultures and technologies as some of the essential assets, it is vital they are taught by a diverse group of faculty and members around the world.”